Trousers-stretcher



UNTTED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

BENJAMIN J.' GREELY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS. i

TRousERs-STRETCHER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 391,244. dated October 16, 1888.

Application filed June 4. 1887. Serial 110.240.224.

.To all whom t may concern;

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN J. GREELY, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Trousers Stretcher and Support, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows the preferred form of my stretcher and support applied to a pair of trousers. Fig. 2 is aview, partly in section, ofA

the preferred form ofmy stretcher and support; and Fig. 3 is a modification.

The purpose of my deviceis tokeep trouserslegs in their original shapely condition and to stretch trousers-legs when ont of shape, so that they will regain as far as possible their original shapely condition, by stretching the trollsers-legs at the bottoms to form lengthwisel folds at the front and back of the legs between the inside and outside seams; and my invention is a device for stretching and supportingtrousers made up of a spring, former-blocks secured thereto lengthwise of the spring, and a pin or holdingpoint projecting from one of the former-blocks to prevent the article supported from slipping off the device when it is in use.

In the drawings, A is a spring,and B B are blocks to which the spring A is pinned. Block B is preferably ofconsiderablelength, as shown in the drawings, and is the main former-block, one of its ends, when in use, being properly placed flush with the bottom edge of the leg, and its other end being some distance toward the knee portion of the leg. In order that this main former block B may bepressed along the entire length of one of its edges against the inner surface of the trousers-leg, when the device is in place, I pin the former-block loosely to the spring, so that the former-block may stand at an angle to the spring when the device is used. Block B engages the trousers at one fold,and block B havinga pin, b, to engage the trousers at the other fold. Block B', if desired, may be made integral with spring A, as in Fig. 3.

Vhen my stretcher is to be used, trousers should be folded with the seams of the legs against each other and the stretcher applied, as shown in Fig. l. By suspending the trous- (No model.)

ers from the spring A the lengthwise folds become more or less set by the contact of the former-blocks B B', which are secured to the spring lengthwise of it, so that they form extensions thereof, and this setting of the length- Wise folds tends to cause the legs to regain their original shape, the weight of the trousers obliterating bagginess and wrinkles and setting the folds to a very considerable degree.

In Fig. 3 I show a modified form of my device,in which spring A is bent at B' and at b, so that parts of the wire serve the purposes of block B and pin b, as will be plain from the drawings.

I am aware of Brintons patent, No. 361,260, dated April 19, 1887, and disclaim all that is shown in it, my device ditfering from Brintons in that it is provided with a. holding-point or pin which engages the trousers-leg when the device is in use and prevents the trousers from slipping from the device.

I am also aware of the German patent, No.

13,710, granted t0 William Kramer, May 14,

1881, and disclaim all that is shown in it, my device differing radically from the device shown in that patentin that my former-blocks are secured to the spring lengthwise of the spring, and not crosswise of the spring, as in the German device.

I am also aware of T. E. Kings patent, No. 65,395, dated June 4, 1867, and disclaim all that is shown in it, my trousers stretcher and support differing radically from his spring for holding cloth in sewing-machines, in that his sp1-ing has no former-block loosely pinned to it as is the case in my device.

Vhat I claim is- The improved trousers-stretcher herein described, eonsisting of spring A and formerblocks B B', former-block B being loosely pinned to spring A and former block B provided with a pin, b, to engage the article supported, and the former-blocks being secured to the spring lengthwise thereof, all substantial] y as and for the purpose set forth.

BENJAMIN J. GREELY.

Vitnesses:

EDWARD S. BEACH, J oHN B. Snow. 

